Archive: North Jersey towns supportive of Bischoff family

Wood-Ridge High School students and faculty cross Windsor Rd. as a group to Kohler Funeral Home to attend the wake of beloved teacher John Bischoff, who died on June 10, 2011. A sign outside the school to honor Bischoff.(Photo: NorthJersey.com file photo)

RIDGEWOOD — As a coach, John Bischoff preached skills and effort. As a father, he shared his love of sports and competition. As a fan, he never stopped having fun.

Now John Bischoff lives on as a memory.

The tragic death of Bischoff, a teacher and former baseball and football coach at Wood-Ridge, shocked the local sports community. Almost a month after a weightlifting accident took his life, the outpouring of affection for his wife, Jackie, and two daughters, Nikki and Kelly, continues to swell.

"The three of us have been really strong so far," said Jackie. "We feel like we have so much support from John’s family, my family and friends, the town of Wood-Ridge, River Vale, Hillsdale and now Ridgewood. We feel it everywhere we go."

John was slated to coach the Ridgewood-based Bergen Blazers U-16 softball team this summer. Kelly, a rising junior at Pascack Valley, was going to be a member of the team.

"I approached him during fall ball and he said he was flattered and was excited," said Jim Scibetta, the Blazers U-18 coach. "When [former Blazers coach] Gary [Muzio] and I used to talk about the good guys in Bergen County, we always talked about John as one of the good guys."

Today is the last day of the three-day Blazer Bash softball tournament in Ridgewood. Saturday, the tournament organizers honored John with a skills competition. There were competitions for throwing from the outfield, fastest around the bases and a home run derby.

To start the proceedings, Jackie threw out the first pitch. The overhand toss sailed straight and true to John’s long-time friend, Art Levine.

"I trained in the yard with the kids in the morning," Jackie said, smiling. "They told me I needed to follow through, but I didn’t want to hit Art or do anything bad."

Jackie is able to smile. Nikki and Kelly, too. They lost a husband and a father, but it’s hard to cry a lot when so many people want to tell you how wonderful he was.

"It’s overwhelming .... in a good way," said Kelly. "The outpouring of appreciation, the cards we are getting, the random acts of kindness — people we don’t even know. It is so great when people come up to us and tell us stories. It makes us so proud."

The stories are plenty. Levine, who coached with John since 2001, tells how John was superstitious.

"If we were winning by a lot he would always say, ‘Don’t pack up the equipment bag,’ " said Levine. "Don’t pack it up until the last out is got."

He continued.

"I was a dad who coached, John was a coach who coached, but he was never the type of guy who acted like he knew more than you. Clearly, he knew more than us. It was a pleasure to be by his side all these years."

Craig Nielsen coached Nikki at Pascack Valley and Kelly was a starting outfielder this past spring.

"He was the ideal parent of a kid you were coaching," Nielsen said. "If you needed help, he would give it to you, but he let you do your job. We knew he was a former coach, but he wouldn’t butt in."

Tony Albro worked with John for years at Wood-Ridge. They coached together and Tony gave one of the eulogies at John’s funeral.

"John could teach anything because he was such a great motivator and good person," said Albro. "I don’t think there is anybody in the world who could say a bad thing about John."

The Blazer Bash officials stenciled the letters JB on the field at Veterans Memorial Park in Ridgewood.